I just got through watching Keanu & Rockne on IN, and I'm sad to see the trouble they had, especially Rockne's bobbles here & there, and then poor Keanu seemed to pick up on his problems & made her own. Sad. :(

Such a lovely beautiful couple. I particularly enjoy their star lift, reminiscent of G&G. But I've noticed that Keanu's matured a lot into a grown woman, and now she & Rockne are almost the same height. All these changes seem to have affected what was once so easy to do. It would be a shame if they didn't make the Olympic Team, their "Unchained Melody" is one of my favorites.

That said, I also watched the couple in 1st place, and have to say well deserved, well deserved, loooooooooooved their Firebird routine!!!!!!!!

Okay, I hope M/B finally skate they way they do in practice in competition tomorrow, so that I don't have to defend them anymore. They are so much better than they show sometimes.

Totally agree. I've been defending them, too, because I truly believe they are our best pair. They have a quality the others don't have yet. I sincerely hope they come back strong in the FS, so they continue to believe in themselves.

[QUOTE=gold12345;449986]M/B's main problem today was a botched death spiral that gave them 0 points and plummeted them a bit in the standings.

Well it was more than the death spiral. That element is not worth 11 points.

[QUOTE=gold12345;449986]There's a lot more than goes into pair skating, and a lot more that goes into skaters' scoring potential. How many times already have we seen D/B skate rather clean internationally and still not score all that well?

Yes, reputation seems to garner points for some teams. And Denney and Barrett are just beginning to build theirs. Plus they are learning very quickly. Hence the vast improvements in their PCS scores. Very well deserved in my opinion.

Today's long programs should be very interesting. I hope everyone skates very well. It will add to the drama and the excitement. I also wish McLaughlin and Brubaker performed up to their potential in the short program. I would have liked to see how close the scores would have been between them and Denney and Barrett.

Such a lovely beautiful couple. I particularly enjoy their star lift, reminiscent of G&G...

I love this lift by M/B, too. That arm position is so much more beautiful than just throwing the arm straight up in the air! I hope they can just shake the freak accident off and skate the lights out of their free. To repeat the sentiments of previous posters, pairs, in general, can be a splat fest. M/B could easily make up the points with a good free.
Now for a few shout outs to teams
E/L in third place that means I should be able to see them on TV tonite! and maybe a kind soul would put their performance on YouTube, then i can enjoy (more like obsess) for a long time to come.

Tanovich/Chau: I know who the are, but I really never knew them, ya know? there was, IMO, something a little off about every one of their element last night and yes they skate kind of juniorish, but boy do they have charm. I literally smiled all the way through the program. And as far as being juniorish, they could have skated to Latin music and shook a taiil feather or skated to snoozy classical music, then i would have probably rolled my eyes and say "look at that junior team try to be mature". I say, skate who you are. If you are a cutie-patootie, then skate like a cutie-patootie

Dobbs/Jacobsen: looks like a new class act. I cant wait for them to strengthen their elements, then i would have loooong rants about them. she looks like a star.

HOLY COW! what a great skate and score for Y/C. I am pleasantly surprised. I still think that they need to put john in a tight shirt and trousers, get some strong music and let him just rock out! The soft/sweeping music just doesnt suit him.

Good luck to all pairs tonight! I always keep my fingers crossed for a non splat fest night.

Actually Denney holds a few national titles in roller. She left roller to skate ice before she was old enough to skate at world class level in roller. My daughter used to skate singles in the same division as Caydee in Artistic Roller Skating. I was always very proud when my daughter placed second to Caydee!

Well it was more than the death spiral. That element is not worth 11 points.

I know... That's why I referred to it as the "main problem". Zero points on any element is a killer, especially when it comes on an element that's supposed to be a sure thing.

Yes, reputation seems to garner points for some teams. And Denney and Barrett are just beginning to build theirs. Plus they are learning very quickly. Hence the vast improvements in their PCS scores. Very well deserved in my opinion.

Not trying to be annoying, but if we're looking at this truthfully, their PCS have still been relatively low internationally this season, and their SP score here is very similar to the score they received at Nationals last year. So I haven't really seen a "vast improvement" in PCS. Denney and Barrett have done a great job being their usual consistent selves, but I think their weaknesses hold the PCS side of their score down more so than a lack of "reputation". Sure, PCS can be somewhat reputation based at times, but usually the teams with the best PC will indeed receive the best scores there. D/B's main strength right now is their technical consistency.

[QUOTE=gold12345;450141]Not trying to be annoying, but if we're looking at this truthfully, their PCS have still been relatively low internationally this season, and their SP score here is very similar to the score they received at Nationals last year.

Denney and Barrett last year at nationals 61.51 (36.58 TES + 24.93 PCS)
Denney and Barrett this year at nationals 63.01 (35.63 TES + 27.38 PCS)

Maybe "vast" was a little strong, but still an improvement in PCS. I agree that area is their biggest weakness and I also think McLaughlin and Brubaker are a great deal more elegant and smooth. However, I like Denney and Barrett's excitement. It is contagious. Also, don't forget Denney and Barrett placed in the top ten at 2009 worlds above McLaughlin and Brubaker.

Both teams have their strengths and I'll admit I am biased because I remember Caydee roller skating when she was six years old. I really think she has star quality. I also like McLaughlin and Brubaker. They have just been struggling with the pressure for over a year. Here's to wishing all our American teams a great skate in the long.

I think Denney and Barrett's PCS improvement is significant. For the first time, their PCS soared into the 7s, with a 7.29 on PE vs. M/B who had a 6.25 on PE. This is the first time that D/B have beat M/B both TECHNICALLY AND ARTISTICALLY. I had to say I was surprised M/B's PCS wasn't as high or higher, but maybe the judges are trying to send them a message.

I don't think a message was trying to be sent to M/B. I think their scores were reflective of the performance they delivered last night. Aside from the major errors last night, they also had a couple of trip ups on steps and out of sync spins . . . these are small details that add up in deductions when they're not done well, as M/B showed last night.

I don't think a message was trying to be sent to M/B. I think their scores were reflective of the performance they delivered last night. Aside from the major errors last night, they also had a couple of trip ups on steps and out of sync spins . . . these are small details that add up in deductions when they're not done well, as M/B showed last night.

Exactly. They had many mistakes, and the PCS were a bit lower than the leaders who went completely clean. Perfectly understandable that the leaders would have a higher score in performance/execution.

I really thought Keanua and Rockne were going to own this event. This is so sad. I can't imagine their LP which has not been that strong all season coming through for them, and even if they did skate clean, making the team is still a long shot.

I agree with Nadine that Keauna certainly has grown up. While she looks just beautiful, she is a lot taller and more shapely than she was two years ago (and her jumps were not that strong then either). I can see why they moved the Nicks who has experience coaching a pairs team without a big height difference in Tai and Randy but I just don't see this working for much longer. Some girls just never adjust to their new body (like Kimmie) and it is even harder in pairs.

I really thought Keanua and Rockne were going to own this event. This is so sad. I can't imagine their LP which has not been that strong all season coming through for them, and even if they did skate clean, making the team is still a long shot.

I agree with Nadine that Keauna certainly has grown up. While she looks just beautiful, she is a lot taller and more shapely than she was two years ago (and her jumps were not that strong then either). I can see why they moved the Nicks who has experience coaching a pairs team without a big height difference in Tai and Randy but I just don't see this working for much longer. Some girls just never adjust to their new body (like Kimmie) and it is even harder in pairs.

Now if we could just get Rena Inoue and Rockne Brubaker together.....

lol, I don't think the height difference is a big deal. Keauna is probably 5'0, 5'1"... Not tall, and I don't think that's going to be a problem with her jumps.....A team like Shen & Zhao don't have a huge height difference either. Also, I think a clean skate with get them into the top 2 no problem. However, I am not expecting them to skate clean, so it's going to be iffy. They just need to do well and see what happens.